Seattle: Half-Day Wildlife and Whale Watching Cruise
Seattle, USA
- 3 to 5 hours (approx.)
- Offered in: English
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Overview
You don’t have to venture into the San Juan Islands to see whales in their natural habitat—with this tour, you can board a whale-watching cruise right in downtown Seattle. You'll spend 3 to 5 hours onboard, looking for whales and learning about the area’s ecosystem from an expert naturalist. Food and beverages are available for purchase onboard.
- Take a whale-watching cruise straight from downtown's Pier 69
- Learn about whales from an onboard naturalist
- Food and drink available for purchase onboard
What's Included
- Exhilarating 3 to 5 hour whale watching tour with an expert onboard naturalist
- Includes all applicable taxes and surcharges
- Food and Beverage for purchase
- Gratuities appreciated but not mandatory
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- 2701 Alaskan Wy, Seattle, WA 98121, USA
Please arrive at the FRS Clipper Terminal, located on Seattle's waterfront at Pier 69, 45 minutes prior to scheduled departure time.
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Ticket Redemption Point
2701 Alaskan Wy, Seattle, WA 98121, USA
Itinerary
Pike Place Market (Pass By)
Space Needle (Pass By)
1
Salish Sea
3 hours • Admission Ticket Free
Seattle Aquarium (Pass By)
Seattle Waterfront (Pass By)
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Transportation is wheelchair accessible
- Most travelers can participate
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 150 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Michael_S
It is a most relaxing way to spend an afternoon looking for whales and wild life. The boat is spacious, clean and comfortable. The crew is very knowledgeable and shares their experiences. We highly recommend this trip.
Reviews
4.1
based on 266 reviews
Mary_C, Jun 2026
Excellent day, 2:30 PM trip.
Saw orcas, ate lunch, purchased some snacks and souvenirs.
Trip was successful for whales.
Made some great memories with my friend and I am looking forward to being warmer and on shore.
Highly recommend this group for Whale watching.
Soraya_S, Jun 2026
Amazing experience 🥹🩷
The crew was so friendly and nice! If you love whales 🐳 you must see this 🥹🩷🙏🏻🙌🏻
Baron_L, Jun 2026
The staff was very friendly and helpful. The food was great and very reasonably priced. They seemed very knowledgeable and invested in making sure everyone got to see the marine wildlife. They were concerned about the conservation of the wildlife and its habitat. The insidewas very comfortable and the bathrooms were clean
Susan_G, May 2026
Great experience. Saw lots of whales and was very informative . Guide was exceptional - was very knowledgeable
Brenda_A, May 2026
The captain and his crew were awesome! Took the 5/30 noon tour and the captain and his crew did not disappoint. Great first time experience got to see some killer whales and humpback whales 🥹👏👏
David_C, May 2026
Incredible experience. Saw an orca pod playing and hunting and one was curious enough to swim right under the boat.
Geraldine_L, May 2026
A good experience. Lovely boat. Saw whales but very far away. Shame we did not see them come up more though.
Colleen_C, May 2026
The line took a minute to get through once through wait in area and get on boat. They took us to area where they heard they might be what gorgeous animals orcas are. Would like more information on them but it was great and staff nice and friendly
amy_h, May 2026
We went to see Orcas . It was a great experience. Easy check in and the naturalist did a great job . We even had a Orca go under our boat. A pleasant surprise that we also received pictures from our expedition.
Gabriel_V, May 2026
The naturalist and the creo, fantastic! We boarded and before one hour, we saw Keller whales and later, humpback.
Cynthia_H, May 2026
Not impressed. Was suppose to start at 9:00am and they changed it without notice to 12:00. Saw a lot of spouts but only a couple tails.
Danielle_F, May 2026
Great experience! The boat wasn't overly crowded. We were fortunate to have great weather and got to see Orcas,Grey whales and Sealioms
Graham_G, May 2026
The tour was what we paid for to see wild animals in their normal enviroment it isnt guaranteed but we were lucky ti see Orca's and grey Whales.
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you so much for your kind words, Graham! We're thrilled to hear that you enjoyed the Only Wildlife and Whale Watching Tour and were fortunate enough to see Orcas and Grey Whales in the Salish Sea. Your experience truly captures the essence of what we hope to offer on our tours!
Shelley_S, May 2026
Our trip was canceled and wasn't notified until we showed up and read a notice posted on the ticket window
Mark_B, Nov 2025
Very nice boat. We saw a pod of 9-10 Orcas (2 families). Naturalist knew all about each whale and provided detailed info about all of the adults. Downside was about 90 minutes each way to see the whales. Very little narrative about the communities we passed by, history of the area, etc. which we would have appreciated because it was our first visit to the Northwest. The narrative would made this a 5-star trip.
shadan_A, Oct 2025
A bit underwhelming since we didn’t see many whales. There was just one whale roaming and not enough time.
Response from Host, Mar 2026
Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry this trip didn’t meet expectations. Whale activity can vary day to day, and we cannot control their behavior, but our team always works hard to find and spend time with wildlife whenever possible. We appreciate you joining us and hope you’ll consider giving us another opportunity in the future.
Becky_G, Oct 2025
Wonderful trip. Recommend. Comfortable seats. Knowledgeable staff. Lots of pictures of a humpback whale.
ilaseo_L, Oct 2025
You may not see much of the whales. The weather was nice. The premium window seats are not a priority as most of my viewing was from the observation area on the bow.
Joseph_G, Oct 2025
Knowledgeable crew added to a great experience. It was quite crowded but that did not take anything away. We only saw one humpback but it was active and gave us plenty of opportunity to watch and photograph.
Paddywagon4217, Sep 2025
Nice tour, we did see whales which was the purpose of our trip. Viewing on deck was crowded but we did see both killer whales and humpback. The guide told us she was getting us great pictures, so we did not bother to take any. Did not realize that they were selling the pictures we thought a download was included. The snacks and drinks on board are reasonably priced. Do not bother getting premium seating, no early boarding and you are on deck for watching.
Peter_G, Sep 2025
Excellent whale watching tour with a friendly staff and excellent views of the water. I learned a lot and also saw 2 types of whales, orca and a humpback whale. I also like that the staff takes photos of the whales that are spotted too.
Katherine_D, Sep 2025
Knowledgeable friendly staff, with a clean boat. Food and drink prices were reasonable and we saw both killer whales and a humpback!
Mariana_F, Sep 2025
Save your money! You won't see much, if anything, and they don't do refunds if you don't see anything. We saw one tiny little whale from about a mile away :-( and for about 10 seconds. Not worth the money or time! We were on the boat for 6 hours!
Kim_J, Sep 2025
The Captain & crew were great! We were very pleased to have spent an hour with the Biggs Orca pod #120. Then down past Tacoma for a rare appearance from Malekai, a humpback!
Bring a small pair of binoculars . The viewing platforms will be crowded and your cell phone cameras won't produce very watchable results. If you are lucky enough to see some excellent activities, buy the professional photographers shots.
Sara_S, Sep 2025
I would highly recommend taking something for motion sickness ahead of time. They do offer some on board, but it typically takes an hour for it to kick in, so the first hour was relatively uncomfortable. But otherwise great! They guarantee that you will see something, and we were able to see a humpback whale, a few porpoises, some harbor seals, and jellyfish!
Katie_Z, Sep 2025
Loved it! Good size boat with many viewing points, as well as staff that are dedicated to turning the boat so everyone can see the sights. We saw a humpback whale almost immediately upon entering our looking area, and got to watch for many minutes as it hung out near us, as well as several tail flukes. The naturalist on board, Allison, had a ton of great information, and the figurines and books were an added bonus for my toddler. We also got mini foam orcas for my sons as we disembarked!
Lisa_M, Sep 2025
We had a fantastic whale tour!! Really fun day all around with perfect weather also!! Would do this trip again!
Phillip_B, Sep 2025
We saw three sightings of Orca whales. It may have been three distinctly different
Orcas or one very active Orca.
The FRS CLIPPER had a biology
educator that shared information regarding
Orca behavior and Orca research.
Keelyn_W, Sep 2025
If I had not been on another whale watching tour, I wouldn’t have anything to compare it too. It was ok but I didn’t feel it was worth the money.
Lydia_S, Sep 2025
The staff were amazing. We just didn’t see any activity except for 3-4 pop ups of minkos whales. Was given a voucher that’s good for a year but not living in the area not sure when I’ll be able to come back. Kinda wish there was an option of getting maybe 50% back of cash back vs voucher. You just really have to be prepared that you might not see whales.
From $154.97
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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Seattle: Half-Day Wildlife and Whale Watching Cruise
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